Sourcing High-Risk Commodities, Nestlé's Commitment

Palm Oil

As part of our commitment to protecting biodiversity and ecosystems, we have continued our efforts in tackling deforestation, particularly in the production of palm oil. Globally, we bought around 420,000 tons of palm oil in 2015—about 1% of global production— from a number of processing companies that source oil from Malaysia, Indonesia and other countries. Of that 420,000 tons, 42,000 tons were sourced for products made in the United States. By the end of 2015, 98% of our palm oil was traceable to the mill and 20% was traceable to the plantation for the U.S. supply. We continue to work with our suppliers and partners, The Forest Trust (TFT) and Conservation International, to source credible data and carry out field assessments to increase the traceability in our palm oil supply chain.

Pulp and Paper

Nestlé bought 1.58 million tons of pulp and paper in 2015, much of it from paper mills, converters and packaging manufacturers in the United States, Europe and Asia. It is used primarily for food packaging, wrapping and transportation. More than 35% of the pulp and paper we use involves recycled materials, but food safety, quality and physical properties prevent us from using 100% recycled material. In partnership with The Forest Trust, we map and assess supply chains of paper and paperboard suppliers across a number of high-priority countries, including the United States. Supplier scorecards are used for direct engagement, an approach that is drawing positive reaction from local markets. As well as focusing on deforestation and virgin fiber, our requirements for pulp and paper, developed in conjunction with TFT, require protection of high-carbon-stock forests and other critical criteria. To demonstrate compliance, we are using Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) accreditation. We aim to source only pulp and paper that meets our “no deforestation” requirements or, at the very least, that are from suppliers making measurable progress to meeting them. Now, 74% of our global pulp and paper supply is traceable, representing 70% of our target for 2015. 

Read more stories from the 2015 Creating Shared Value Report